Bloody Roar II: A Hidden Bond
by Tiger5913
Summary: My first Bloody Roar story ever completed! Has Keniko (Kenji + Uriko) coupling as well as a lot of other mushy romance (fighting also, for you adventure readers!). My first Bloody Roar fic so please go easy on me! ^^
1. Default Chapter Title

8/31/00

**Bloody Roar II: A Hidden Bond**

****By Tiger5913

****

****

Disclaimer: the characters such as Uriko, Kenji, Mitsuko, etc. belong to Hudson Soft; Erika, Ryan, and Wendy belongs to me.

****

Dedication: to God, my parents, my ever-supporting friends, and my beloved cousins.

The poem I wrote for this fic:

_Uriko and Kenji;_

_To outsiders, it appeared that they came_

_From totally different backgrounds_

_Remembering their past made _

_The care and friendship they had _

_For each other grow stronger._

_One was energetic and outgoing,_

_Her twinkling light brown eyes _

_Full of warmth and care._

_The other, solemn and secretive,_

_His mahogany eyes reflecting his _

_Intense attitude and maturity;_

_But naturally, _

_They made the perfect couple._

__

__**Part 1**

****

"And today, we are starting a new project." Loud groans of protest were heard throughout the classroom, but nevertheless, the teacher continued, "Don't say this was unexpected; I had already told you all about it last week."

_Project #1,008_ A freshman with long brown hair sighed and reluctantly sat up to listen to the teacher, Ms. Gerna, gave out further instructions.

"Since we're nearing the end of this school year, this will be like your pre-final exam," the instructor informed. "It will be a major portion of your grade, so take this seriously."

_Just tell us what it is,_ The same freshman urged silently.

"Lately, we have been studying and discussing the human mind, correct? This project is related to that topic. You and a partner - yes, I'm assigning partners - will be researching about the other's phobia. Your phobias do not have to be common things, like about height or small, enclosed places. They can, but can also be something different; unique."

_Phobia? Oh yeah, a fear about something _ The student frowned and wondered, _Why are we gonna do research on feared things? Hmm_

__"Psst!" A girl to her right whispered. After glancing quickly at the teacher, she smiled at her friend and cautiously threw a folded up piece of paper on her desk. Curious, her friend hid it under her desk and opened it:

_Hey Uriko! Research on phobiasweird, huh? Well, anyway, I hope we'll be partners! Since you already know all of the stuff I'm afraid of and vice versa, so this shouldn't be too hard for the both of us! _

_Erika_

__

Uriko Nonomura smiled and turned the paper over. She took a pencil from the top of her desk and wrote back:

_Weird is right! Teachers and school projects Pray that we'll be partners! _

__

When the teacher wasn't looking, she slipped it into her best friend, Erika Daweson's hand, and turned her attention back to the front of the class.

"Today, I'll pair you up with another of your peers and the only thing you two will do is find out each other's greatest fear, and discuss how you're going to research the subject that leads to your partner's phobia," The teacher paused and looked up at the clock. "You have fifteen minutes, so work quickly. I'll give you instructions each day, then let you go on your own. Any questions?"

No hands were raised. Uriko glanced quickly at the clock plastered on the wall in front of the room, each tick of the hand bringing the class one more second toward the end of the school day.

She smiled. "Very well. As I call out your name, please get up and sit next to your partner, switch seats if necessary. Andrew Collins and Maggie Reza"

Uriko crossed her arms over her desk and rested her head in them. A young teenager of fourteen, she was a good student at school and pretty popular due to her friendly and caring personality. Slim and petite with waist-length auburn hair, she was sometimes mistaken and assumed to be a frail and weak girl; but inside, she carried a hidden secret that only very few others knew. Erika didn't though. Even though she was Uriko's best friend, Uriko wasn't sure if she could be trusted with such a secret like that. 

Even though she did well in her courses and usually started projects with an eager attitude, today; the female student was only half-paying attention to the instructor as she kept calling out pairs. She sneaked a peek at her best friend and Erika waved two fingers at her in hello.

"Erika Daweson and" 

The two girls held their breath.

"Ryan Scheller," the instructor finished.

Erika looked at Uriko and made a gagging face. After rolling her eyes, Erika stood up and grabbed her supplies, then slowly trudged over to sit by her partner.

_Poor girl, stuck with Mr. Pest-of-the-Class_ Uriko thought sympathetically as she looked at her best friend, although she couldn't help letting out a quiet giggle at the sight of Ryan Scheller pull out a chair for Erika in mock politeness. Barely spotting a whoopy cushion the same color as the pinkish-red chair, Erika refused and sat in a different chair on the opposite of him.

_What an immature jerk,_ Uriko concluded at the same time Ms. Gerna called out, "Uriko Nonomura and Kenji Ohgami,"

_Huh? Me and Kenji?_ The fourteen-year-old lifted her head, looked behind and across the room to her new partner.

Kenji Ohgami was a quiet student who sat toward the back of her class. He was small, but muscular for his age, with raven black hair and chilly brown eyes with a light shade of orange in them. A solemn young boy, most girls thought he had attractive features, although Uriko had once seen him with a sinister expression before, when they'd first met. He and Uriko had been in school together since the beginning of the year, and sometimes he'd given her a ride home, but they'd never exactly became close. Since their encounter, they had become friends, yet there was still something in the back of their heads reminding them of what'd happened before.

_Well, if he's not gonna move, guess I will_ Uriko sighed and gathered up her belongings, then went to the back of the classroom. When she got near Kenji's desk, she made a shooing motion at the guy sitting next to him and after he'd vacated the chair, she plopped down in it. The teenage girl dug into her backpack for a piece of paper and a pen, while taking a look up at her partner. Coincidentally, he was peering down at her and their eyes met. Flushing, she glanced back down at her pack and pulled out a sheet of notebook paper.

"Hi," she greeted quickly, focusing her eyes on writing their names on the paper.

"Been a while," was his cool reply.

"Yeah" Uriko replied as she momentarily looked up and her light brown eyes met his again. "Well, looks like we'll be spending some time together, so on the subject, can you tell me what's your biggest phobia?"

Kenji hesitated and finally answered, "You go first."

Shrugging, she said, "Okay," and wrote down, _"My biggest fear is losing my family."_

Her partner glanced over her shoulder and commented, "Clever."

She rolled her eyes. "I'm serious, you know. So tell me, what's yours?"

_BRRRIIIINNNGGGG!_ Loud shuffles were made as students hurriedly packed up their stuff to get out of class.

Uriko groaned. "Darn it, that's the bell! Kenji, tell me quick!"

Wordlessly, he took the paper and ripped it into two, then wrote on one of the pieces. He handed it to her; then he stood up and left the room, clutching the other half. Shaking her head, Uriko looked down at the paper and read silently to herself what he wrote:

_I'm afraid of being captured and brainwashed by Busuzima again._

__

A concerned and sad frown spread over her brow.

"Hey!" A voice behind her piped up.

"Hi Erika," Uriko replied knowingly without turning her head around. "Too bad about Ryan, huh?"

Erika sighed in slight distress. "He's such a jerk; I never even found out his phobia! Ryan kept fooling around and changed the subject whenever I tried to ask him about his fear. Think Ms. Gerna will let me switch?"

"Don't think so, you know how she is," Uriko slipped the paper into her backpack and looked up at her friend sympathetically.

"How're you doing with Kenji?"

"Okay, I guess."

"That's good!" Her best friend said and then waved her arms around the room. "Hey, why are we still standing here in class? Let's get outta here!"

"'Kay," The freshman agreed as the two girls walked out of class and down the hallway. From out the window gleamed rays of sunlight, lighting up the shadowy hall as well as the students rushing through the crowds, trying to get outside.

"Mondays are such a drag" Erika commented when they wrenched themselves out of the group of other high school teens.

Uriko smiled and started walking down one end of the street. "Well, see ya tomorrow!"

"Bye!" Her friend called to her and darted in the opposite direction.

_Just one more month, just one more month_ Uriko thought optimistically as she slowly trudged toward her home.

A low rumble growled through the air, the gray sky overhead threatening rain. The teenage girl shivered when a chilly breeze picked up, her yellow long-sleeved sweater and pale pink shorts no barrier to the growing-cold weather. She gripped the straps of her backpack more tightly and hastened her pace, peering over her shoulder at her darkening surroundings. Upon seeing a familiar street sign up ahead, she smiled in relief and started to run, when she suddenly heard a few yells coming from around the corner. Curious, she slowed down and sneaked toward the voices, hiding her body behind the tall green shrubs.

"Go the hell away!!" She heard someone yell, flinching slightly at the loudness of the voice. "What do you want?!"

_What's going on?_ Uriko peered around the bend cautiously. Through the haziness of the weather, she could still make out two people in the middle of the street. There was a guy wearing black clothing, stepping up menacingly someone sprawled out on the ground in front of him; the figure was blocking her view from seeing who was the person that had called out. Another object was thrown to one side. A squinting of her eyes told Uriko that it was a dark blue bike.

"Who's that jerk threatening?" She whispered in question softly to herself.

The figure in black muttered something to the person before him, too low for Uriko to hear what he'd said. He took a couple steps foreword and afraid that he was going to hurt the one on the floor. She couldn't afford to stand still anymore, and leapt out of her hiding place.

"Hey, you!!" Uriko cried out. 

Before the dark-clothed figure could turn around to see who'd called him, she dropped her backpack and ran up to him, jumping into the air and kicking his back with both of her feet. Uriko was the fastest runner in her class and really good with speed. The figure flew a feet through the air and landed onto the ground hard, as auburn haired girl herself came to a swift and graceful landing. Stumbling while standing up, he turned and glared coldly at the girl who had attacked him.

"Scram!" She shrieked loudly as she put up her fists and got into a fighting stance. The figure hesitated before darting off, casting one last look at her while he disappearing into the shadows down the street. 

"Jerk" Uriko muttered and bent down to pick up her backpack from the concrete road.

"I could've taken care of him myself" An upset, yet familiar voice behind her murmured.

All of a sudden remembering the person on the street that she'd saved, she immediately turned around to see a teenager around her age, covering his face with one arm. 

"Um, hello? Who are you?" she asked, wondering why he was hiding his identity. Slowly and with reluctance, he let down his hand, barely revealing the top of his face and her chocolate brown eyes widened when she recognized the boy.

"Kenji!"

He flipped up into a standing position at his name and quickly turned his back to her, heading toward his fallen bike. Despite his scowl, Uriko dashed around his form and stood stubbornly in front of him, but let out a gasp as she did so. Her hand instinctively went to cover up her mouth as she spotted two long, jagged cuts on one of his cheeks and the thin line of blood that trickled from it, down the side of his face. 

"Oh, Godare you okay?" Uriko uncovered her mouth; she reached foreword and delicately touched one of the cuts. Flinching, Kenji moved away and brushed past her.

"What happened?" She asked with concern.

"" Came his silent answer.

"Aren't you gonna say something?"

"Something." Kenji replied in a smart-aleck tone as he propped up his bike.

_Hrmp_ She thought, while a frown spread over her brow. "Funny."

Even as she said that, Uriko bent her head down to unzip her backpack and pull out a small white handkerchief. Slipping the bag back over her shoulder, she went over to Kenji.

"What're you doing?" he asked, eyeing the cotton fabric.

"Trying to help your cut heal," she answered matter-of-factly as she folded it vertically several times. After it was turned into a straight strip, Uriko stepped more closely to him and wrapped the hanky around his head, tying a knot at the back.

"There, that should stop the bleeding." The teenage girl gave him a faint smile. "Wellsee ya," she turned to leave.

_That wasnice of her What's her motive?_ Kenji wondered as he eyebrows tightened into a small frown. He was feeling weird toward her; perhaps it was gratitude or maybe something else. All he knew was that he couldn't stop the next sentence that came out of his mouth, "Um, you need a ride?" 

Surprised, Uriko answered, "Surethanks."

She smiled at him again and climbed onto the back of the bike. The fourteen-year-old let her feet rest on the rims of the rear wheels, and wrapped her arms around Kenji's firm waist. He stiffened in response, but didn't say anything, just pedal down the street in silence.

*****

_Huhthis is sad_

__Uriko involuntarily frowned as she sat on a chair in the library, reading the first paragraph she had found about abduction in that day's newspaper. Her current class period was German, but the teacher substituting that day didn't know any words of that language, so he had let the class go to the library to hang out and study. 

_The abduction of 15-year-old Aaron Quera occurred today, at a local high school around 4:38PM. This has obviously not been the first; in the past year, there have been approximately 300-500 kidnappings of residences under 18 in the local area. Only 67% of them have been found again, and returned to their protected homes, whereas the rest are currently missing, and searches for them still continue. _

__She let out a heavy sigh and thought, _Kenji's pretty lucky, I guess_ Just then, the first sentence of the next paragraph caught her eye.

_Police and other officials strongly suspect that the mysterious zoanthrope beings are responsible._

__The young student's eyes widened as she thought darkly, _That's total bull! UnlessBusuzima is kidnapping people again and recruiting them into zoanthropes_

__She shivered as a faint, yet vivid memory of her childhood flashed through her mind

*****

_"Noooono shot, no shot!" _

___A frightened kid with a tear-streaked face sobbed at the sight of the sharp, pointed object descending toward the small arm._

_"Quit squirming, damn it!" came the harsh reply as the needle jabbed into the soft, tender skin of the shaking arm. A pained scream ripped out of the poor youth's mouth. Several feet away, an assistant was holding down a different youth, the same fate being done to the other child. The two kids screamed in unison as the needle was yanked out roughly._

_"Ha! After the zoanthrope blood gets settled, we'll begin training!" was the last thing they heard before darkness claimed their consciousness._

__

*****

BRRRRRIIIINNNNGGG!__

__The loud noise of the bell knocked a startled Uriko out of her flashback. A curse accidentally slipping out of her mouth, she gathered the article in her arms and ran to her Biology class, the memory haunting her mind on the way. As she settled into her seat, she stuck the newspaper into her backpack and took out other class supplies. More students barged in, and the class grew louder. Right after the teacher had stepped a few feet into the room, Uriko spotted Kenji following a split second later.

_Does Kenji remember his past at all? How he got the abilities to turn into a mole beast form? _She wondered, resting her head on the wooden desk. _No, wait, I forgotBusuzima brainwashed him not too long ago_

__With a sad expression on her face, the ninth grader shifted her attention from her partner to Ms. Gerna and listened as the instructor began a brief explanation about the project. 


	2. Default Chapter Title

**Bloody Roar II: A Hidden Bond**

****

**Part 2**

****

A few days later, the Biology project had started to come to a close, as well as school. The students silently cheered as each school day passed, the date on the calendar getting closer to the beginning of summer vacation. Uriko and Kenji worked on their assignment together, and she was happy to see that her new friend had begun to loosen up after a few days into the project. He'd also given her a ride home everyday, since she had saved him in the strange incident. 

Often, Uriko found herself looking at him and wondering if that perhaps he was the other child she'd seen nearby as she was getting injected with powerful zoanthrope genes. If so, they would have both been only about eight years old when they had acquired their strong fighting techniques.

It was the Friday before the end of the first week in June, in which the students in Uriko's class had turned in their reports. It was also the day that Uriko noticed her partner was absent; it was unusual because so far, Kenji had never missed a day of high school, with the exception of when he was under Busuzima's controluntil now, apparently.

_Where **is** he?_ She wondered.

After the last bell rang, the teenage girl called out a preoccupied good-bye to Erika, and set out home alone. As soon as she stepped away from the campus, it began to rain lightly. Uriko grinned happily at the wet drops dropping into her silky brown hair, breathing in the fresh smell of the rare summer rain. Water soaked her clothes, dripping onto the black vest she wore over a white cotton shirt. With her matching black leather pants, her sneakers squeaked as she began jogging down the street. Forgetting about Kenji, she played around for a while, not feeling rushed to go home on the account of the upcoming weekend. 

By the time she had finally continued walking toward her house, sometime later, the sky had begun to darken, even in the weather of early summer. The streets were damp from the rain as more gray and black clouds loomed over the area. Looking up at the sky, she decided to take a shortcut home, and darted into a familiar shadowy alley. 

As soon as she did, Uriko's eyes seemed to let off a very faint yellow glow, allowing her to see her surroundings more clearly, letting her avoid stumbling over objects or falling into cracks in the street. It was toward the end of her shortcut that Uriko had suddenly recognized this was the alley where she'd first encountered Kenji. A joyous smile spread over her face as a light, sprinkle of rain continued falling from the clouds, a few drops pelting her pink, air-moistened lips.

"Enjoying yourself?" someone from behind asked in a low, sneering tone of voice. Startled, she quickly whirled around and saw a dark figure perched on a ledge in the alley. The figure swiftly jumped down in front of Uriko upon seeing that she had noticed their presence, and slowly stalked up to her. She stepped back, but sighed in relief after the person's face, all except for their eyes, was clothed in dim light coming from a street lamp overhead.

"Oh, it's just you" Uriko said with a relieved smile at Kenji, who was looking at her coolly. When she didn't get a response, she brushed her long bangs away from her forehead and glanced at him curiously. Starting to feel uncomfortable under his silent glare, she questioned softly and carefully, "Um, something wrong?"

Kenji stepped further away from the shadows and more into the light, revealing a set of glowing, blood red eyes instead of his normal brown ones. A familiar maroon scarf was wrapped around his neck and a yellow outfit covered the rest of his slim, strong body. The look on his handsome facial features made him appear eerily sinister and slightly evil.

"K-Kenji?" Uriko stammered, slightly frightened by the sight of her friend's creepy expression.

"Don't call me that" came his low murmur of a reply as he raised two fingers of his right hand in front of his face; his trademark stance back when he was Bakuryu.

"What?" she asked, pure confusion in her voice.

He didn't give her an answer, just leaned down and pulled out something from inside his boot, keeping his eyes on her the whole time. Uriko leapt back from him when she unexpectantly caught a silver light flash from the object. It was the gleam of a small, sharp-pointed dagger, the weapon of an assassin.

"What are you going to do with that?!" She questioned in slight panic.

"Come with me," he ordered, ignoring her question.

"Where? What for?" 

"Busuzima wants you." Kenji stated bluntly, a tiny orange fire igniting in his eyes.

"W-what?? No way, I'm not going anywhere near him!" Uriko exclaimed firmly, and even though she had a good idea of what had happened to him, she still asked, "Kenjiwhat happened to you?" 

"Come with me, or else," he threatened, his voice leaving no room for argument as he tightened his grip on the dagger.

She narrowed her eyes and said defiantly, "Over my dead body!"

Kenji smiled slowly, a dangerous curve quirking at the corner of his lips. The female student thought he sounded wicked as he replied in a low voice, "That can be arranged"

Her pulse pounding in her ears, Uriko glanced at him, feeling a little scared as she said, "And what do you mean by that"

"If you won't go, then I'll have to kill you." She was surprised her friend could say something so bluntly like that, and not even flinch. 

"You shouldn't play with sharp objects," Uriko told him with a serious edge in her voice as she immediately kicked away the knife from his hand. With that done, the dark-haired teenage boy glared angrily at her and grabbed both of her hands. He swung his body in between her legs, leapt up into the air behind her, and delivered a powerful kick to her back, landing perfectly after doing so. She cried out in pain and fell to the floor, dropping her school bag as her body connected with the cold, hard ground. Wincing, Uriko stood up as quickly as she could, and turned around to face Kenji, her newest friend as well as her present opponent.

An emotionless and blank expression on his face, Kenji ran toward her, fists raised in a ready-to-attack mode. More prepared this time; she back-flipped onto a small ledge just before he was about to strike her in the chest with one of his strong punching moves. Spotting her perched above him, he jumped up to the same ground level as her and after catching her breath, the fourteen-year-old girl hopped off the ledge to escape.

"Kenji, snap out of it!!" she yelled as he somersaulted down to follow her.

"Don't waste your breath," was his quiet reply, one of his former sayings.

_I didn't want to do thisbut it looks like I don't have much of a choicecan't go on defense forever_ Uriko bit her lip as she decided what to do.

"I hope you'll forgive me later," she whispered to herself as she hurriedly ran up to him.

Keeping her body a safe distance away from him, Uriko quickly launched several punches at his chest while yelling out, "Hah!" Kenji was slightly knocked back at each hit. Right after the fourth time, the fourteen-year-old brought her fist down toward his head and performed a fury of numerous blows on top of his skull. At the thirteenth punch, she struck especially hard and he dropped to the ground as a little bit of blood dribbled out of his mouth.

Not pleased with being knocked down, Kenji growled angrily and swung his leg around to trip Uriko. Once she fell, he hopped over her head and as soon as she stood up, her back was unfortunately turned to him. He clasped his hands around her waist and leapt the both of them high into the air, then turned his victim upside down. A split second before she would connected roughly with the cold ground, Uriko realized what was going to happen and her arms went up to protect her skull. The provided defense still caused an immense amount of pain to her elbows and major discomfort to her head; tears sprang to her eyes as she let out a painful moan.

_Ohhhhhthat hurts_ she thought, clutching the side of her black vest tightly. _He's not leaving me any choiceI have to do this_

__Uriko stood up dazedly and twirled around in a full circle, trying to brush off the pounding in her head as she knocked Kenji several feet away from her. Speed being a stronger point of Uriko's than his; she had already morphed into her beast form by the time he stood back up. Before he could transform as well, she screeched loudly, "Mrowl!"

The tiger-striped cat darted at him and leapt onto his head, performing her rage move. Grabbing onto him as a blue ball of energy encased them, she and Kenji were tossed against the walls, flying wildly around the dark alley. Her opponent screeched in pain everytime he hit a wall and Uriko winced at his reaction, her heart feeling like it'd been ripped apart as she watched him cry out repetitively. 

Finally, she threw him roughly to the ground and swayed slightly, feeling really dizzy on top of the pain she felt. After a few seconds, Uriko recovered and ran over to where her friend was and a few tears dripped from her saddened brown eyes. Kenji was lying on the floor and unconscious, with some tears in his clothes from the attack revealing nasty, bloody cuts and a couple of bruises on his muscular body. 

"Oh God" she whispered, regretting what she had did.

Letting the tears trickle freely down her cheek, Uriko grabbed her backpack and slipped it on. She then went back to her friend and gently raised his body up, slinging one of his arms over her shoulder. Supporting him, the female student slowly walked down the alley, toward her home. Her conscience nagged at her, Uriko's guilt building up more and more until she felt like screaming out her rage. Biting back the outburst, she ducked her head and continued leading her friend to her house.

Over at a hidden corner, a surprised voice murmured hoarsely, "So_they're_ here" With that, the observer darted off.

*****

_He'll be okayright?_

Unable to sleep, Uriko sat up on her bed and let out a heavy sigh. After bringing Kenji to her house, her mother, Mitsuko had taken care of his wounds and phoned Yugo Ohgami about the situation. They both decided that it'd be better to let Kenji rest there for the night. During that time, Uriko had kept watch of her friend, looking after him and hoping that he'd get better soon. For once, she was glad for Alice frequently teaching her lessons on how to help aid others. Kenji was sleeping in the Nonomuras' guestroom, which Uriko was silently glad that her room was right next to it. She'd hoped to be the first one to see her friend conscious again. 

Feeling restless, she slipped out her bed and grabbed the empty cup sitting on her nightstand. Yawning, the auburn haired girl walked out of her room, deciding to go downstairs and get some water. Her footsteps barely made any noises as she treaded down the soft carpet, one of the significance of cats' movements. Tall shadows etched across the walls of the hall, assisting the darkness of the night, and just like before, her eyes began to glow while going further down the hallway. 

When she went by the guestroom, a faint sound reached her ears. Slowing down to a stop, Uriko tilted her head toward the door curiously, and slowly pulled it open. As soon as she stepped inside, she recognized what the sounds were and set the cup down on the floor. She shut the door behind her, and bent down to flicker on a small nightlight plugged into the wall, emitting the room in a dim yellow light. Uriko was trying to find the main lights, while whispering into the darkness, "Kenji? Was that you?"

"Uriko?" came a soft, questioning murmur from opposite side of the room.Forgetting to turn on the lights, she darted across the room and stood by the silhouette sitting up on the bed. "It's meare you alright?? You in any pain?"

"I'll be okay," he whispered his reply. Her eyes acting like her personal flashlight, she saw Kenji grip his head with one of hands while a pained look came over his face. Suddenly, a tortured moan escaped his lips and he reached out his arms, wrapping them around Uriko, his head lying on the middle of her chest. A little startled at the intimate contact, she felt his shivering body contact hers as a quiet sob came from him. Shaking off her surprise, she smiled sadly and held him in caring reassurance. A wet stain soaked through her cotton nightgown, the result of the slow tears that trickled down his cheeks. 

"Sure you feel okay?" Uriko asked, feeling more concerned about his wounds from her beast form attack than his tears.

"Uh huh," he nodded slightly. "Manyou're getting pretty stronghope it's thanks to Long, instead of that bastard."

She knew he meant Busuzima by that 'bastard' remark.

"Urikodo you think I have a weak will?" Kenji said into her abdomen.

"Of course not!" Uriko answered firmly. "Where'd you get an idea like that?"

"Why do I keep succumbing to his brainwashing?"

"So you knowwhat happened" she trailed off. "And it's probably because he confuses you firstthat's why

"It came back to me while I was sleeping." He said, explaining about how remembered their fight.

"Oh"

"I'm sorry about what I did to you." Kenji told her.

"Not your fault, don't worry about itmy head can stand a lot." Uriko replied; her eyes closing as her own guilt gnawed away at her. Suddenly, she winced as she felt a jolt of pain in her head. Noticing her movement, he looked up at her face while he frowned.

"I hate myself for what I did," Kenji said, frustrated. "I'm really sorry, Uriko."

"I'm sorry tooI don't like fighting or hurting my friends, believe me." She told him with a weak laugh. "And don't hate yourselfit wasn't your fault."

"This might sound stupid, but why did you help me?" he questioned after a long moment of silence.

The young girl opened her eyes and couldn't hold back the shrill giggle that escaped her mouth. "Well, the last time I checked, I thought you were my friend. Along with Erika, of course."

Even though he assumed that Uriko couldn't see him, Kenji pulled back slightly and through the blackness of the room, looked into her caring eyes with his light brown ones. "I know that I never acted or showed that I did, I care about you more than that"

"More than Erika?" she teased.

"Hey, you know what I mean"

Uriko smiled. "Yeah, sorry for the dumb joke. Seriously though, thanks for saying that, it means a lot, you're like a best friend to me. Teehee, whoever knew that Ms. Gerna's project would get us to be such close friends?"

_Close friends_ she thought, triggering up another memory

__

__*****

_"No more" A small child pleaded, eyes that were once full of bright spirit now showed pain and produced constant tears._

___"Keep going, you little brats!" A harsh voice replied, raising his hand threateningly. "We're not stoppin' till you master those skills!"_

___The two children wept openly, but obeyed their master and continued fighting the other. Each appearing only about eight or nine years of age, their unhappy faces projected an obvious expression of maturity beyond the years of their youth. Their vocabulary was also extended to that of a regular teenager, after hours of listening to their unmerciful master scold them with vulgar words. Stringy and sweaty hair bobbed loosely in front of their foreheads and bruised knuckles struck repeatedly at their opponent._

___"We'll get through thisdon't worry" One of the fighters assured in an unconvincing tone of voice as the cruel master turned away briefly._

___"ButI'm tired" The other kid replied weakly, sitting down roughly on the floor after saying that._

___"Hey, you! Get up and keep fighting, Bakuryu!" came the immediate angry demand._

___"Don't call me thatnot my real name" the one called Bakuryu whispered to himself as he stood up.___

___"What did your mommy call you?" his friend asked when they resumed their battle._

___"I don't remember" he answered mournfully._

___"Um, from now on, I'm gonna call you Kenji, after my old best friend from school! 'Kay?" _

___"'Kay"_

___"When we get saved from this 'ellhole and anybody asks what your name is, just say it's Kenji!" the child standing in front of him insisted enthusiastically._

___"Okay!" he replied, a tiny smile replacing the former look of distress on his face._

___"Some day, we'll get outta here!" The other fighter promised._

___"Yup," he agreed with a small, timid grin. "Promise we'll stay together?"_

___"Uh huh! You'd better cuz you're my new best friend!"_

_His smile grew wider. "Thanks, Riko!"_

___"Wel-come!" the confident little girl said and sneaked a peek at their master who was watching them sternly. Catching his creepy, small, silvery eyes, she frowned before fake-launching a combo on her new best friend._

__

__*****

__

_Like when we were kids Kenji and I shared a childhood? _She wondered after a moment of silence. _Should I ask him about that? Would he know what I'm talking about?_

Deciding to take a chance, Uriko backed off a little and knelt down to his face-level. She asked hurriedly, "Kenji, do you remember anything about your childhood?"

""

"Remember what happened between us when we were about eight or nine years old?"

"" Came his quiet reply.

"Never mind," she said finally, glancing away, feeling embarrassed.

All of a sudden, Kenji shut his eyes with a groan and clutched his head with one of his hands, grabbing his friend's arm with his free one. Worried, she gasped and questioned, "Are you okay? What's wrong?!"

" Riko?" he murmured, a slight edge of confusion in his voice. 

Her eyes widened and she asked excitedly, "You remember, don't you!"

"" was his distressed, stretched out reply. "Not my name"

"Yeah, yeahgo on" Uriko urged softly as she laid his head on her lap and rubbed his back soothingly.

"Best friend?" he said shyly.

"Mmmhmm" she answered.

"" Kenji finished, breathing raggedly.

"We both remember," Uriko concluded joyously. "That's great!"

"My head hurts." He replied, wincing.

"Ken-jimine does too, but I'm not complaining. Well, now I am, but you know what I mean!" she shook her head with a sigh.

"Ye-es, barelybut I do remember" Kenji said the last part with a weak smile. 

"Mother and Alice got me out of the institute when I was nine" she told him. "I was so glad to be back at home that II forgot I'm so sorry we didn't go back for you, Kenji."

"It's okay, I understandat least Yugo found me," He said in a somewhat optimistic tone of voice.

"Still, you probably wouldn't have had to go throughall that brainwashing againif we'd helped you instead of Yugo." Uriko said. She hugged him more tightly. "At least that's all over"

_For now_ Kenji thought quietly to himself. _How long will the serenity last?_

__The two friends stayed intertwined in the shadowy room, unknown to the other, both secretly smiling at the discovery of their past. Taking in a long shaky breath, Uriko slowly parted from him, glanced at her friend as she said reluctantly, "Um, I think I should goyou still need your rest." She giggled. "And I gotta go downstairs, still haven't gotten my water yet! By the way, Yugo'll pick you up tomorrow morning, k? I mean, if you feel better."

"I'm fine."

She grinned. "That's goodsee you later then," 

They smiled at each other, and then Uriko turned to leave the room. But before Kenji lost his nerves, he took a hold of her arm and tugged her down to him. She glanced back at him and her sparkling brown eyes widened when he pressed his mouth to hers somewhat clumsily, yet still tender. Following his instincts, Kenji pulled her body closer to his and held his friend, her silky brown hair pressed against the roughness of his cheek. Relaxing into the kiss, Uriko closed her eyes and her arms automatically went to encircle around his firm, muscular waist. 

His lips were soft and warm against hers, and she could feel a gentle touch of innocence from them. Realizing that this was a first kiss for both of them, a light shade of pink flushed on her cheeks. A delightful tingle went through her body as the teenage boy nervously rested his slightly shaking hand on her hair, stroking the brown strands gently. Finally, she backed away with reluctance and waved a shy good-bye to Kenji; his wave in response was just as bashful. Picking up the abandoned cup, Uriko slowly opened the door.

"Bye" she heard him whisper one last time. Smiling in pleasure, she gripped the cup tightly and shut the wooden door quietly behind her.

_Kenji_ Uriko thought wistfully as she softly jumped down the steps and trudged into the kitchen. _I hope in the morning, he'll remember what just happened. Heehee, I bet Erika's gonna be really surprised!_

__After filling up her glass with water, she ran up the stairs, making sure to creep quietly by Mitsuko's room before going back into her own. She took a long sip, then set the cup on the nightstand and crawled underneath the covers of her bed. Glancing joyously up at the ceiling, Uriko fell into a blissful sleep with a smile on her face.

*****

"This place is pretty, huh?" she commented.

"Yeah"

Bright rays of sunlight shone onto the faces of the new young couple lying on the fresh green grass, their arms propped up behind their heads. The moistened dew of morning smelled of dirt and sweet flowers, the valentine-colored roses in particular. Hummingbirds buzzed around the trees, wings flapping at a speed un-seeable by the naked eye. 

The two teenagers glanced at their surroundings, a secluded corner of Uriko's in the park nearby their school. A small gust of wind breezed through their hair; the fourteen-year-old girl breathed in the cool, peaceful air, a dreamy smile forming over her carnation soft lips.

Turning onto his side to face his companion, Kenji murmured, "Uriko?"

Her eyes fluttering to a close, she replied, "Mmmhmm?"

"Do you remember what happened that one day after school?"

"When?"

"The day that it rained, and you found me with that weird guy in black on street?" he inquired.

"Ohh" Uriko sat up and Kenji did as well.

"Hope you don't think I'm being nosy, but can you tell what that was all about?" she questioned.

"It's okay; I'm the one who brought it up"

"Soit's story time then?" Uriko asked with a teasing twinkle in her chocolate brown eyes, yet there was a look of sincerity on her face.

"Uh huh" he sighed. "Good thing school doesn't start till tomorrow." Kenji turned over his arm to examine a - still healing - small purple bruise on his elbow. 

_People are gonna think I got into an accident or something_ He thought to himself. Looking up, the male student saw Uriko bury her head in between her knees in guilt. "Uriko"

"I feel bad for doing thatbut I didn't have a choice! Did I?" she looked at Kenji. "Are you still mad at me?"

"I never was mad," he admitted. "I was under mind-control a couple of times and did stuff that I now regret, but I didn't feel angry at you. You know, it's a good thing you have long hair to cover up thatreally nasty bruise I gave you." His fingers went to gently touch one side of her head.

She nodded. "Okay, enough of this guilt! We gotta leave the past behind."

"Um, on the subject of that guy"

"Uh huh?" his girlfriend turned to fully look at him when he said that.

"Well, do you recall how I ran out of class after giving you the paper with my phobia on it?"

"Mmmhmm"

"After that, I got on my bike and starting riding home, but I felt kinda guilty for ditching you, so I changed directions and went toward your house toapologize."

_So it was because of me that he got hurt?_ Uriko wondered, feeling ashamed; her face showed it.

"Don't put on that look," Kenji insisted. "Hey, you did rescue me so don't worry about it."

She dismissed the subject with a quick nod and asked, "What'd he want?"

"That guy told me to go back to where I belong."

"What?"

"I think I saw him later in the lab, so maybe he works for Busuzima."

The teenage girl raised an eyebrow. "I thought all of us had beat him up."

"He's got an endless supply of lackeys; I should know Some of them probably helped him out." He said knowingly. "Anyway, I refused and the guy knocked me off my bike when I tried to ride away - that's where I got my cuts. He kept threatening to kill me if I didn't go with him and after that, you showed up and kicked him in the back."

"Glad to have helped!" She told him with a grin. "Last person I fought was Shenlong to save Mother, and that was a while ago."

At the reminder of the old times, a shadow of a smile appeared on Kenji's face and the two started talking about some of the events they'd enjoyed not too long ago. The youngest out of the zoanthrope group, it was easy for the both of them to talk to each other than having a conversation with Yugo, Alice, or the other older fighters. When the sun had turned orangish-yellow and began to set in the west, the couple left the park. Kenji retrieved his bike from the racks and after walking Uriko home; he rode toward his house and readied his supplies for school the next day.


	3. Default Chapter Title

**Bloody Roar II: A Hidden Bond**

****

**Part 3**

****

"Hey, did ya hear??"

Wednesday afternoon at school, with just one more period to endure and the students would be let out; Erika flew into her Biology class and greeted her best friend breathlessly. Since the teacher hadn't arrived to class yet, she had immediately headed for Uriko's desk. Gasping, she had managed a few understandable words before Uriko held up her hands and protested, "Slow down!"

She took in a deep breath. "So did you?"

"Did I what?"

"Hear about the party?!"

"Um, no" Uriko answered with a confused look on her face.

Erika laughed. "Ryan's throwing a private party tonight at the Teen Zone, and he's invited a quarter of the freshmen grade! Where were you these days, Saturn?"

Remembering that she and Kenji had gone to her secret spot in the park everyday after school, Uriko giggled and said, "Nope, but close"

Too excited to notice the secret smile forming over her best friend's face, Erika continued, "So are ya going?"

"Okay, why not?" she replied with a grin.

With two days of school left, there were parties thrown left and right at the girls' high school. The juniors and seniors had their graduation prom, and not wanting to feel left out, sophomores and freshmen celebrated themselves with parties and dances at the community center. The Teen Zone was a popular dance club near the girls' high school; students usually went there to hang out with their friends or whenever someone had a birthday.

"I guess you don't know that it's a date party?" Erika questioned.

"I-it is??" Her friend stammered, while thinking, _Ooh, that could be a bad thing_

No one knew about her and Kenji's relationship yet, not even Yugo, Mitsuko, or Erika. She hadn't planned to keep it a secret, but somehow, the two both had not uttered a word about their getting together. Everytime people had seen them with each other and grinned at the couple, they just hastily told them they were "just friends." 

Erika nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah! Who are you going with?"

"Umm, can't decide, you can go first"

Looking embarrassed, she looked away and said, "Better not call me crazy"

"I won't, I promise!"

"Ryan."

Uriko gasped in surprise. "Really? I thought you said he was a jerk!"

"Who's a jerk?" A voice behind them questioned.

Grinning, Erika replied teasingly without even turning around, "You are, Ryan."

Ryan grinned back at her and motioned her over to his desk. After whispering a "See ya later," to Uriko, she obliged and the two started chatting about the party.

_A date partyoh boy_ Uriko thought nervously as she began to take out her supplies from her backpack. _Should I go with Kenji? Would people get suspicious?_

__"Hey," a voice behind her greeted, breaking through her train of thoughts.

Smiling faintly, she turned around and replied looking slightly distracted, "Hi Kenji."

Noticing the look on her face, he asked, "Something wrong?" 

"Nope, everything's-"

"Hey Kenji!" A chirpy voice called out from somewhere in the other side of the room.

Wondering who'd interrupted her, Uriko glanced over at the direction of where the voice had come from. She didn't have to wait long; one of their fellow students wearing a tight, sleeveless shirt and black skirt bounded over to the couple from across the room. A closer look at the girl with fiery red hair and sultry green eyes told the couple that it was the lead representative of the ninth grade, and one of the more popular girls in their grade, Wendy Kesler.

"Um, hi Wendy," Kenji replied, somewhat awkwardly.

Obviously not sensing his discomfort, Wendy went on, "You hear about Ryan Scheller's party tonight?"

"No"

"Well, he's throwing a party at six o'clock at the Teen Zone, and I hear that it's gonna be cool cause there's going to be black and violet lights so most of the people that are going will be wearing white." She said all in one breath.

"Uh, thanks for the info" Kenji said with a weary expression on his face.

"Anyway, I don't have a date yet, so you wanna go with me?" Wendy asked.

"" he glanced at his girlfriend.

"Are there going to be a lot of people there?" Uriko questioned, those being the first words she'd uttered since Wendy had interrupted her and Kenji.

"Ohh, you're here too, Uriko" was the freshman representative's reply, clearing not acknowledging her classmate being there until that moment. Her light green eyes narrowed as they flickered back and forth from Kenji to Uriko. "I guess you're already taken then, Kenji."

_That's kinda conceited of her to say_ Uriko thought, feeling irritated as she admitted, "He's not takenyou can go with him if you want."

Her boyfriend glanced at her, his light brown eyes silently asking, _"Are you sure about this?"_ She nodded very slightly, then turned away before he could see the hurt look on her face.

"Um, I guess I can go with you" Kenji finally said, his words coated with obvious reluctance.

Wendy's face brightened. "Great! See ya at the party!" With that, she ran off to her group of friends.

_Stupid Ryan_ The couple thought, although they didn't know the other was thinking that as well.

"Have fun" Uriko told him; her eyes focused on the front of the class.

"You're going too, right?"

"Nope."

"What?? You're gonna stick leave me with her?"

"Take care of yourself at the party," the brown haired girl replied, ignoring his previous comment.

_Damn it, now she's mad_ Kenji growled quietly.

"See you later," he said halfheartedly and left to go to his own seat as the teacher walked into the classroom.

*****

_Man, I can't believe I'm going with **him**_

__A smile on her face as wide as the Cheshire Cat, Uriko used her free hand and pushed open the double doors leading into the club, her other arm around A.J. Haru, another cute freshman guy from one of her classes. Dressed in a knee-length white dress with a beige colored shawl wrapped around her shoulders, she brushed back her wavy hair and peered around the inside of her classmate's home. Just a couple of hours before the party, she'd received a call at her house and A.J. had asked if she wanted to go with him. Glad to have gotten an invitation, she accepted, and there they were. 

Erika stood inside the dance room, staying nearby the doors and greeting the guests as they arrived. Seeing Uriko and A.J., she flashed her best friend a wink and motioned them toward one of the other many rooms of the Teen Zone. Looking around at how the place was decorated, Uriko and her date walked through a narrow hallway with glittery designs plastered on the walls. 

The twisty path ended at a dark room, where a gleaming ball and flashing colorful beams were the only source of light. Groups of teenagers danced in the center of the dance floor, while the disc jockey fumbled with his records; loud music blared out of the speakers located at the top corners of the room. Tables were lined up against one wall, pizzas and cans of soda resting on top on them.

Not too long after she and A.J. had came, the room quickly filled up with more students, making the air seem slightly stuffy. A fast-rhythm song started playing, and Uriko tugged A.J. near the others and they started twisting their bodies to match the beat. While they were dancing, the fourteen-year-old girl's eyes caught sight of Kenji and Wendy nearby. She received a surprised look from Kenji, but sadly turned her head the other way and casually moved herself over to another spot in the crowd; her date followed. Over at some of the corners, several freshman girls and guys occupied them, talking amongst themselves.

An hour quickly passed by, and the food on the tables quickly disappeared, as well as the shyness of the students hanging around in dark parts of the room. When everyone had coincidentally gathered together at the middle of the dance floor, the music cut to a stop. The flashing lights disappeared and after a few seconds, Ryan hopped onto the stage and stood behind the microphone. An overhead light turned on, and the freshmen booed while he was yelling, "Hey everyone!"

The response was deafening. Ryan clapped his hands over his ears in mock protest, a big grin on his face.

"How about we take a break from this and play a game?" he asked the crowd after taking his hands away. "We can get back to dancing later."

From the slightly weary cheers, he took that as a yes and smiled. "Our next event is gonna be an old-fashioned game: hide-and-go-seek"

His schoolmates looked at him strangely and he quickly continued, "with a twist! The last five people found get to take either a small gift like this," Ryan paused and presented a little box wrapped in glimmering paper. "Or this," he held up a bucket containing a beige-colored substance. "And dump it on me."

Enthusiastic whistles and laughter rang throughout the room.

"Everyone knows the rules, right? Then let's get it on! Erika and I will be the seekers," he gestured toward the black-haired girl standing a little ways from him. "So when we start counting, you all better run!" 

The freshmen waited restlessly for him to finish talking before they began to clear out of the room, rushing around to find a good hiding spot.

"Hey, before you go, there's one more thing I need to tell ya!" He shouted. "In this game, there's no lights"

Immediately, the lights went off, enveloping the room in darkness, once again. A few of the students screamed at the sudden move.

"Sogood luck!" Ryan smiled mischievously and motioned Erika over to him. The two of them turned around, covered their faces and started chanting, "One"

The crowd scattered, people running in all different directions to get out of their current room. During the midst of the rush, Uriko was shoved along unwillingly and a look of discomfort flickered about her face as she felt herself being squeezed in the traffic of teenagers. By the time she got away free, she had lost sight of A.J.; the brown-haired girl groaned and remembering the game, ran down one of the many hallways to search for a secluded spot to hide. 

All of a sudden, a hand shot out of what seemed like, a closet and gripped her arm. Uriko shrieked in surprise as she tumbled into the place and the person inside shut the sliding doors, leaving her only to see pitch-black. She recovered quickly and twisted around wildly to wrench her arm from its tight grasp, while muttering into the darkness, "Hey, what's the big idea?!"

"Stop struggling-!" A voice hissed back a reply.

She rebelled and pulled her hand away hard, wincing as her back struck the wall at the strength of her yank. The force of it also caused her mysterious companion to stumble foreword and collide with her; they fell. Stunned momentarily by what'd happened, she shook it off and instantly opened her mouth to let out a harassed scream. Before even taking in a deep breath to prepare it, a hand clamped her mouth and her scream became muffled.

"Don't do that!!" the voice scolded.

Uriko threw off the hand and whispered furiously, "Who are you?!"

"Kenji, and don't scream! Ryan or Erika's gonna find us if you do!"

As if right on cue, the two heard a shriek outside nearby, and the triumphant voice of Ryan saying something to the student he'd just found. Light footsteps were heard heading toward them, and Uriko covered her mouth with her own hand, waiting quietly. She didn't move until the sounds went away and then she tried to move her legs from underneath Kenji to kick him. Something inside the closet was trapping her lower body, pinning it to the carpet floor. 

Resorting to her fists, she grabbed what she assumed was Kenji's arm and socked it, while asking, "What do you think you're doing??"

Immediately, he grabbed her hand and held her arms over his head, leaving her with no other offensive options except verbally. 

"Sorry for the sudden 'attack'," Kenji whispered to her. "But I didn't know how else to get your attention!"

"If you wanted my attention, then come up to me and talk, not just reach out of nowhere and grab me like that! You scared the hell out of me!" She growled, feeling a little angry.

"I said sorry" he repeated, sounding somber.

Uriko's expression softened. "If you wanna talk, okay, but can we at least get out of here? Or maybe you could please get off of me first?"

Unknown to her, he blushed a crimson red and jumped up, reaching down a hand to assist her. Still holding onto his hand, she slowly slid one of the doors opened and poked her head out, listening for any noises. Hearing only very faint sounds, she took a quick look around and saw a closed door nearby. Deciding to take a chance, Uriko ran swiftly across the hall and slowly pushed open the door, darting inside and dragging Kenji behind her. She examined the wall with her hand and her fingers contacted a light switch; she flicked it on while her boyfriend shut the door not so quietly. 

"Shh!" Uriko shushed him. "Don't be so loud!"

"You don't think they're gonna notice a light on in this room?" Kenji argued. "What difference does the door make?"

"Plenty!" she shot back. "Okay, let's just change the subject" The female student trailed off and turned to face him. 

"It was stupid," Kenji blurted out somewhat stupidly after a moment of silence had fell between them.

He wasn't sure Uriko knew what he had meant by that, but she agreed, "Really stupid."

"Never should've done it in the first place,"

"Right."

He glanced at her questioningly, a smile playing about his lips as he asked; "Do you even know what I'm talking about?"

"Not really," she answered with a quiet laugh.

"Keeping our, um, relationship a secret?"

"Ohh, yeah," She nodded in recognition. "I think you're right about that being a stupid thing to do."

"You're not mad anymoreare you?" Kenji asked.

Without answering, Uriko let go of his hand and went over to one of the walls. She stood with her arms raised in an offensive position and her feet spread apart, then started hitting the wall with gentle force.

"I guess that's a yes?" he questioned, looking a little sad.

"I'm practicing my fighting moves by pretending that the wall is Wendy Kesler; she's such a rude snob," she replied, ignoring his question as she delivered a high punch to the wooden surface. "I don't want to forget the moves that I watched Master Long let me 'copy'."

"There's not many reasons to fight anymore"

"You don't know that," she said, her brow knitting together in a sad frown.

He shrugged. "Guess I should do it too, then. Hey, why don't we practice on each other?"

Uriko paused in the middle of a jump kick. "Don't you mean 'with'?"

The dark haired boy grinned and didn't answer right away.

"Kenji?" she looked at him curiously, waiting for him to reply.

"Just like I said, practice _on_," he repeated. "As in fight each other? But no using full force, morphing into our" his voice dropped to a low whisper. "Beast form, or anything like that. Neither one of us should get really injured. And keep it quiet, too"

"Okay, okay, enough rules! Right now?"

"Why not? It'll kill time while Ryan and Erika are looking for us."

She smiled for the first time since the beginning of the night. "How many people do you think they've already found?"

Kenji smiled back. "Everyone except us."

"I wonder how will they know who are the last five that they find?" Uriko asked rhetorically as she thrust her fist slightly foreword and then twirled around in a full circle: her ready-to-fight position.

"They probably won't," Kenji guessed, while responding to her move with his usual back flip.

"Wouldn't it be fun to dump that disgusting looking goop over Ryan?" Uriko said, a grin spreading her face. She backed up and ran toward her opponent, jumping up into the air when she neared him, and kicking him simultaneously with her legs. 

"Heh heh, yeah," came his chuckled reply. He raised his arms defensively, parrying her attack and then brought his fists toward her, punching at chest and shoulder length consecutively.

"I wonder if Ryan and Erika are an item now? Hmm, I'm surprised that so many people came to his party; I always thought he annoyed the hell out of our classmates." Uriko managed to answer. She was slightly occupied by her moving from side to side in order to avoid his blows, even though she knew that Kenji wouldn't try to hurt her on purpose. The light-weighted girl grabbed him by the elbow and pulled him towards her, carefully socking both sides of his face with her arm.

"He did," Kenji told her, ducking away from her and trying to do his "Smoke Bomb" tech. 

"Then why?"

"Dunno, I guess Erika tamed him or something." He answered, using his speedy techniques to seem like he'd vanished in front of her eyes, and suddenly appearing behind her.

She groaned in mock protest and immediately spun around. "I hated it when you used that move back when we first fought and you were stillwell, you know"

He frowned, feeling ashamed and upset at himself as he remembered how he'd behaved. No guilt or thoughts of consequence running through his mind as he ruthlessly attacked everyone, including Yugo and Uriko. 

"Mmmhmm" Kenji answered absentmindedly, a pained look coming over his face, distracting him from noticing that Uriko had bent down and swung her leg around, knocking him off balance and causing the boy to fall on the floor. 

"Damn it!" he cursed as quietly as he could and back flipped into a standing position, the top portion of his sneakers catching her in the chin in the process.

"Sorry for making you remember that," Uriko said, rubbing the bottom of her chin with one hand as she took a few steps away from him.

"It's okay; sorry for kicking you."

She shrugged it off. "Hey, we're bound to get a couple of bruises even from practice-fighting, right? Besides," Uriko paused and grinned teasingly at him. "I'm used to you fighting dirty."

"Oh, I fight dirty, huh?" Kenji questioned her, smiling somewhat wickedly.

She opened her mouth and was about to answer, but got cut off when he hopped up and jumped at her all of a sudden. After being tackled by him, Uriko lost her balance and fell, grimacing as she connected with the ground. 

"We're wrestling now?" she asked, still lying down. 

Not bothering to wait for a reply, the teenage girl pounced and threw **him** to the floor this time. Laughing, Kenji countered that by pushing her off of him. She landed with a thud, but ignored it and charged toward him again. He caught her in his arms, stopping her attack; growling, Uriko struggled against his hold.

"Can we call it a draw?" Kenji asked, still keeping his arms wrapped around her.

"Yeah, guess so" she replied and tried to sit up. "Hey, let go"

"Why?" He asked with a teasing edge in his voice.

"'Cause I wanna get up!" But she smiled and relaxed into his embrace. "Man, you sure have changed from the first couple of times we'd met and fought, calling me an amateur at the start and then saying something poetic to me the second time around."

"'As summer bugs fly into fire'?" Kenji asked, raising his right eyebrow.

She shrugged. "I thought it was corny, but cute."

"Well, it's been a while; everyone changes, right?" he commented. "Did I change for the better or worst?"

"Better, of course."

"That's good," Kenji said and released her, then stood up. 

"Should we leave? The game's probably over by now. Ryan and Erika might be looking for us," Uriko guessed.

He nodded. "Yeah, we should go."

The two starting walking toward the door, with Uriko leading and she put her hand on the knob, starting to twist it. Before she could pull open the door, Kenji tugged on her arm and she took her hand off.

"What?" the female student asked, turning around.

Taking in a nervous breath, her boyfriend reached out and gave her a warm hug. She hugged him back tightly and started to pull away, but he leaned down and placed his lips gently on hers. Feeling her heart pound faster, Uriko kissed him back intensely, her hands instinctively raising up to entangle themselves in his rough black hair. 

The couple was so busy that they didn't notice the door creaking open or the extra bright lights spilling into the room. Their attention was captured when they heard a surprised gasp from Erika. Acknowledging her best friend's presence, Uriko blushed fiercely. She and Kenji backed away from each other as Erika _and_ Ryan gawked silently at them.

"Oh" Uriko tried to think up an excuse.

"We were just" Kenji stammered, trying to slow his ragged breathing caused by the embrace with his girlfriend.

"II guess you two are the last" Ryan finally said.

"Um, c-come on" Erika turned away and walked out of the room; before following behind her, Ryan leaned toward Uriko and Kenji, and stuck a tiny white sticker on the back of their hands. 

"Oh boy, oh boy" Uriko murmured, her cheeks flushing hot with embarrassment.

His face beet red as well, Kenji muttered, "Let's go"

Without exchanging any more words, the couple went after Erika and Ryan back to the dance room. The other students were chatting with each other, waiting for their host to show them who were the five people that had 'won' the game. On stage with Erika nearby, Ryan grabbed the microphone while his companion dragged a small tub from one side of the room. 

His eyes avoiding Uriko and Kenji's, he spoke into the mike, "Um, those of you who have a white sticker on your hand, come onto the stage right now."

Three students pushed through the crowd, got up on the brown platform, and stood next to Ryan. Uriko and her boyfriend followed their schoolmates, receiving a wary look from the party host as they were doing so.

"Uh, these were the last five people found, and I guess that makes them the winners." Ryan informed, and the audience clapped wholeheartedly. 

"It's time to choose what ya want for your prize!" Erika told them with a big grin on her face. "Drench Ryan in pudding, or get a gift!"

The five winners cheered. After they quieted down, the person standing closest to Ryan turned to him and said, "You're gonna get dumped; hand over that bucket!"

Chuckling, Erika gestured for Ryan to step into the tub, then took out a bucket from somewhere on the left side of the stage and gave it to the first winner. Holding his hands up in mock fear, Ryan protested, "Nooooo" as the sticky, yellow contents was poured onto his head. The substance spilled down his face and ran along from his upper body to the bottom, where it met the surface of the blue plastic tub. His schoolmates chuckled in delight at the sight, while the next winner stepped up to Ryan.

"You're gonna need a shower after all this!" she declared after Erika gave her another bucket, and she dumped it unmercifully over the poor host. The third student did the same thing, and the audience roared in laughter.

"Ohh, poor you" Uriko said to Ryan, a smile of pity on her face. "I'm gonna spare ya, okay?" 

The crowd began to boo, but Kenji called out, "Hey, give her a break! I'm doing the same thing, anyway."

Smiling weakly at the two, Ryan declared jokingly, "My heroes!"

Grabbing a towel and draping it over his shoulders, he got two packages from a table nearby and handed them to Uriko and Kenji. As she accepted her gift, Uriko whispered to Ryan, "Thanks for not bugging us for an explanation"

He grinned. "No problem. Good luck, you guys." Then he faced the audience. "The Teen Zone's opening up to other customers, so everyone's gotta go! See you all tomorrow! Remember, only two more days of hell, er, prison, er, school!"

The five on stage jumped off as the ninth graders laughed standing on the floor laughed, then everyone slowly began piling out of the room. As Erika hopped down as well, her best friend stopped and waited for her to catch up.

Before she could say anything or move away, Uriko apologized, "I'm sorry, Erika; I didn't mean to keep it a secret from you! It's just that-"

"It's okay, Uriko," she answered. "I know we all gotta keep secrets some time! But ya better spill it soon; some of the guys in our class are turning their attentions toward you, and the same goes for the girls and Kenji!"

"Hey, we'll just tell them to back off! Right?"

"Mmmhmm!" Erika confirmed with a nod, then grinned slyly and asked, "So tell me, if it's not too personalhow'd it happened between you two??"

Uriko grinned. "Remember the phobia project Ms. Gerna assigned us in Biology"  


*****

"Have a great summer, class, and enjoy your school year next fall!" Ms. Gerna said to her students cheerfully.

Part of the class groaned half-heartedly, but still went up to their instructor to say good-bye personally. Most of the guys shook her hand, while the girls hugged her un-self consciously. Erika ran over to hug her best friend after saying bye to her teacher, and then darted over to Ryan so they could leave the campus together. With her new charm bracelet that she'd gotten from the party dangling at her wrist, Uriko went up to Kenji and linked hands with him. Right before they left class, they both waved to Ms. Gerna and they received a smile back from their teacher. 

"Ride?" Uriko asked as the two strolled down the hallway, through the traffic of students.

"Of course," Kenji said matter-of-factly, turning to smile at her as he replied. 

Just when the stepped outside, stopped and pulled her to one side of the building. Curious, she asked him, "You okay?"

"I, um, have something for you" he told her, and slipped a tiny white box out from his pocket.

Her eyes widened in surprise. "Wowyou didn't have to"

"It's okay, I wanted to."

"Thanks, Kenji" she said, and delicately took her present from his hand. "Can I?"

"Go ahead," he insisted.

The fourteen-year-old girl slowly lifted the cover off the box and unfolded the tissue paper inside, revealing an object. She took a closer look and saw that it was a small cat made out of clear crystal, attached to a silver necklace chain. Touching the miniature ornament, she glanced up at Kenji and smiled brightly. Throwing her free arm tightly around his strong waist, Uriko murmured into his ear, "Thank you"

Blushing, he hugged her back and then replied, "Um, you're welcomeshould we get going?"

She pulled away and grinned. "Yeah! I'm so glad that summer's finally here!"

"School doesn't start for about two and a half months; plenty of time to hang out and relax, right?" he offered as he was helping Uriko fasten her new necklace on.

"Yeah! Let's get this show on the road!" she said with a big smile.

As they started to get on Kenji's bike, the two of them felt something hit their backs and explode. The wet contents inside spilled out and soaked their clothes.

"Hey!" Uriko protested and whirled around to see what had been thrown at her.

Nearby, Erika and Ryan were laughing hard, losing a grip on the multicolored balloons clutched in their hands. Several students were standing a couple of feet away, eyeing the big bucket of water balloons sitting on the ground.

"First water war of the summer!" Ryan cried out. He, Erika, and two other friends of theirs darted off. 

"You all are gonna get it!" Kenji challenged, grabbing his girlfriend's hand and rushing over to bucket. He scooped up a few balloons and chased after the others. 

Laughing, Uriko glanced over at the people standing by and said, "Ami, Joe, come on, help me and Kenji!"

Her friends nodded and dumped their backpacks on the floor, then grabbed some water balloons and followed Kenji.

Before she went after her friends and boyfriend, Uriko looked at the others. "Hey, what are the rest of ya standing there for? Join in!"

Grinning, they happily obliged and the students ran off together, chucking water balloons and soaking each other. At one point, Uriko plopped down on the floor to rest, and peered up at the tranquil blue sky. Kenji noticed, and stopped playing momentarily, then jogged over to her. Wordlessly, the couple lay on the soft green grass together and gazed up at the few twinkling stars that were beginning to appear. Soon, the others joined them in silence. They didn't move from their position until the sky had darkened and the air was getting cold. The group called out a hearty good-bye to each other and went their separate ways. 

"I'll miss them," Uriko said wistfully as Kenji was biking toward her house. 

"Same here" her boyfriend agreed. "At least we'll all be back next fall."

"I hope so" They smiled at each other and continued down the street in silence.

**Epilogue**

****

"You two won't go back for longnot if we have anything to do with it" A figure hiding behind a tree whispered, narrowed brown eyes following the path that the young couple on the bike had taken.

**The Endfor now**

****

**Author's Note:** I hope you viewers liked my story; thanks for reading! I'll be asking this a lot, so sorry for being redundant: sequel or no sequel? 

-Copyrighted by Christina Lin


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